Not Yet
by AdmHawthorne
Summary: Who fits the bill for Jane's perfect mate? Was a one shot, but people have talked me into extending it. M rated... Rizzles
1. Chapter 1

**As usual, the character's aren't mine, please don't sue me!**

* * *

"Honey, I'm trying to do what's best for you! Why are you acting like I've just shot your dog?" Angela Rizzoli stood at her daughter's kitchen sink washing the dishes from their dinner. "What's so wrong with James? He's a nice guy."

"Ma, I can't do this right now, okay? The past couple of weeks have been really hard for me, and I really… I just want to stay in my comfort zone for a little bit. Is that too much to ask?" Jane turned away from the sympathetic look her mother was giving her to put the food away in the fridge.

"I'm sorry, Jane. I just worry about you, and I think you'd be safer if you had someone to come home to." He mother dried her hands and began to help Jane with the food.

"Look," Jane stepped away from her mother. "Even if I did have someone, they'd be in as much danger as I am." She frowned. "Maybe even worse. I mean, look what happened to Frankie. Hoyt… He's not going to stop, Ma. He's just going to keep coming after me and the people I care about until one of us is dead." She wrapped her arms around herself. "Why would I want to drag anyone else into that? That just doesn't make any sense."

Angela closed the door to the fridge and turned to face Jane. She was proud of her strong and intelligent daughter. She only wanted what was best for her, and she was worried that Jane seemed so alone. She deserved someone to take care of her and to love her as Angela knew Jane was more than worthy of being loved.

"I don't want to make anyone else worry about me." Jane sat down at the table. "I don't want to worry about anyone else." She signed heavily and gently rubbed at her temples. "I'm all worried out."

"I know things are hard right now, but it will get better. You have to believe that, Jane." Angela sat down across from her. "Sweetie, I just want you to have something like I have with your father."

"I don't think that's going to happen, Ma. My life is too dangerous for that, and I can't imagine anyone wanting to deal with it even if I was willing to let them."

"Somebody will come along and surprise you. You'll find excuses to be around each other as much as possible. They make you laugh, and you won't know why. They'll take care of you regardless of how hard you push them away. They'll be there for you, and you realize you'd do anything," She reached over and gave her daughter's hand a gentle squeeze, "_Anything_ to make them happy. You know they'd do the same for you. Their presence makes you feel calm. You know when you're around them that, no matter what's going on out there," she motioned with her head toward the door, "that you can handle it because you're with each other. They make you feel…" She searched for the right word. She wanted her daughter to understand what it was she wanted so much for Jane to have in her life.

"Safe." Jane finished Angela's sentence for her.

"Yes, exactly. They make you feel safe." She smiled gently at her daughter. "One of these days, you're going to find someone that you can confide in that makes you feel safe, and all this fuss you're making about not wanting to let anyone else in because it's not safe for them won't matter because they'll be there _anyway_. That's how you'll know."

There was a knock at the door.

"It's okay, Ma. I got it." Jane motioned for her mother to stay put as she answered the door.

"Hi Jane," Maura smiled at her. "I thought I'd come by with some strawberries for your tortoise. I assume you haven't fed him anything fresh since the last time I brought something by for him?"

Jane smiled and let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "You'd be right." She stepped aside to allow the blonde to enter.

"Hello, Mrs. Rizzoli." Maura glanced from Angela to Jane. "I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"Ma was just telling me that I need to find someone to take care of me like Pop takes care of her." Jane took the strawberries from Maura's hand. She rolled her eyes.

"I think Maura would agree with me here. Don't you think Jane deserves to be loved?"

Maura frowned as she tried to figure out the best way to answer the question. "Yes, of course. But, I believe Jane has people to take care of her even if they are not of any romantic interest to her."

"Thanks, I think." Jane popped the berries into the fridge and then leaned against the closed door.

"Well, its true, Jane. I clearly don't know what was said prior to my arrival, so I cannot presume to follow what your mother was trying to tell you…"

"She gave me a brief description of what I should be looking for."

"I thought it was a very good description, thank you very much."

"Yeah, Ma," Jane shook her head.

"Okay, is there someone that already fits the description that your Mother has given you?" Maura took the seat Jane had been in a moment before.

"Yeah, that's a good question." Angela gave Maura a little pat on the arm. "That's a great idea, Maura. Why didn't I think of that?"

"No, I'm not going to start picking apart my friends just to make you two happy."

"Come on, honey, just _try_ to answer the question." Angela shrugged. "What can it hurt? Besides, you know you can trust us."

"Maura, I can trust." She glared at her mother who only gave her a pleading look in return. "Okay, fine." She threw her hands up in defeat and plopped down in a different chair at the table. "I don't _even_ know…"

The three sat in silence for a few moments, Jane and her mother thinking about the people in Jane's life that might fit the description from earlier and Maura waiting patiently. Jane broke the silence with a small gasp.

"Who is he?" Her mother was practically giddy.

"No." Jane replied. Her eyes were huge, and she stared at the floor as if she could will herself to fall through it.

"Come on, Jane. If you tell us, maybe we can figure out a way to get you two together!"

"No, Ma. I mean it. No."

"Jane, it's alright. We promise not to judge you." Maura reached out to place a reassuring hand on Jane's arm, but Jane flinched away. Angela watched as Maura's face tried unsuccessfully to hide the hurt that small movement caused.

"Oh," she breathed as she watched her daughter. "Sweetie, you know your father and I love you no matter what."

"What?" Jane's head shot up. "What are you talking about? Where did that come from?"

"I think you're going to have to be a little honest with yourself before you can be happy, sweetie. But, I understand, and I won't pressure you on this one." Angela stood and made her way toward the door. "I'll leave you two alone. Have a good night. It was good seeing you, Dr. Isles. Love you, Janie."

"Bye, Ma."

"Good night, Mrs. Rizzoli."

The two women watched the door close.

"Jane, what just happened?"

Jane sighed. She took a moment to grab a beer out of the fridge and pour a glass of wine for Maura.

"I think my mother just read my mind."

"You know, that is a scientific impossibility? Although there have been some case studies done on paranormal activity and extra sensory perception, there has never been anything concrete to make any rational argument that such things actually exist."

"Yeah, I'm sure." Jane took a sip of her beer as she tried to block out what she had just realized about herself.

"What did your mother tell you… about the person that would be a good mate for you?"

"She said they would make me feel safe and that they'd be there regardless of how unsafe my life was." She shrugged. "It's just talk, though, you know?"

"But, there is someone?" Maura gave Jane a questioning look.

"Maybe."

"Do I know them?"

"Does it matter?"

Maura scowled at Jane. "Why do you always push me away when I'm only trying to help you?"

"Why do you insist on being there when I'm trying to push you away?"

"You know, I'm not going anywhere, Jane. Just because you think it would be safer for me to not be in your life doesn't give you the right to force me out of it. I can make my own decisions, my own choices, and I choose to be here with you."

"That doesn't make any sense. Why? Why, Maura, would you want to be around me when it's so clearly dangerous?" Jane leaned forward in her chair and put her face in her hands.

"Because I care about you."

"That's not good enough."

"Because you need someone with you that doesn't drive you crazy like your mother does."

"Still not good enough."

"Because you make me feel safe."

Jane sat up and looked at the blonde across from her.

"What did you say?"

"I said… I said you make me feel safe."

She wasn't ready to deal with this yet, but there it was anyway.

She looked around the room and noticed the bag by the doorway. Without another word, she walked over to pick it up as she double checked the locks on her door. As she made her way back to the kitchen, she turned off the lights.

"Maura," she sighed again. "I'm not ready to do this right now. But, maybe soon. It's after midnight; do you want to crash here tonight instead of trying to drive home?"

"If that's okay with you?"

"That's always okay with me."

She walked into the bedroom and placed the bag at the end of her bed. She gave a weak smile as she heard Maura pad into the room behind her.

"Jane, what can't you do now?"

Jane crawled into bed and leaned back against the head board. "I can't deal with myself right now. It's just too much. Can we… can we just go to bed?"

"I don't understand, Jane."

"That thing I told you about what Ma said? Who fits that description for you?"

"You do." Maura blinked. "Oh," the moment dawning on her. "Oh, Jane, I… well, I've never…"

"Tomorrow, okay?"

"Yes, that might be best. I'm just going to go change. I'll be back in a moment."

"Okay."


	2. Chapter 2

**I had really intended this to be a one shot. But, for what it's worth, this is how it plays out in my head as ending. I hope this gives you guys some closure. Really sorry about that. I didn't mean to leave you hanging!**

* * *

Laying in the dark with Maura curled up at her side, Jane thought about what her mother had told her.

Everything she had said, every part of that list applied to the woman beside her. Maura had somehow slowly become her world, and that fact alone should have had Jane running for the hills. In fact, Jane was certain that, had it been anyone else, she would have made a hasty retreat months ago. But, that's not what she wanted to do at all. In fact, she wanted just the opposite.

That desire frightened her.

She had never had strong feelings for anyone, and, when she did find herself attracted to someone, it was always a man. Finding herself attracted to a woman made Jane feel like she didn't know herself. She felt like she was losing her identity, and such a loss of control was something she wasn't sure she could handle.

What if who she turned into wasn't someone she liked? What then?

Maura whimpered in her sleep. Jane rolled over and wrapped an arm around her to quieten her. It wasn't the first time she'd done that for her friend. But, this time, she realized how intimate that gesture actually was. In fact, most of the things with Maura were much more intimate than Jane really wanted to admit.

It was Maura that Jane went to when she need consoling. It was Maura Jane thought of when she needed human interaction. It was Maura that came immediately to mind any time her mother suggested they all go out and bring a friend with them. It was Maura that Jane wanted to see when she didn't want to see people at all. At her most anti-social, Maura was always welcomed. It was Maura. It was always Maura. What's more, Jane had a hard time thinking of life without Maura.

She took a deep breath to clear her thoughts. The scent of Maura's lavender body spray filled her, and she smiled. For a moment, she allowed herself to indulge, to enjoy the sensation of holding Maura in her arms.

It wasn't that Jane didn't know. If she was honest with herself, she'd always known. It wasn't that she was afraid of how others would react. Her mother had calmed her fears just tonight on that. It wasn't that she thought there would be rejection. Maura's reply had assured her otherwise.

Jane Rizzoli was afraid of herself.

* * *

Jane woke to find she was still holding Maura from the night before. As she opened her eyes, she saw that the other woman was staring at her.

"Hey," Jane was trying to get both eyelids to stay open at the same time. "You're awake early."

"I think I wake up earlier than you, ordinarily."

Jane chuckled. "Probably." She moved to extract herself from the tangle of sheets and Maura so she could make her way to the bathroom. When she stepped out, Maura and Joe were gone. So, she started a pot of coffee and set two bowls out for cereal.

"Thanks for taking Joe out." Jane pulled down a box of Lucky Charms from her cabinet.

"Of course, Jane." Maura smiled at her as she sat down at the table. "I would have done it earlier, but I decided to shower first."

"How long have you been up?"

"Two hours."

"Why were you in bed when I woke up?"

"I wanted to be there when you awoke," Jane regarded Maura as she poured the cereal and milk.

They allowed the silence to stay for a moment as they ate and did the dishes.

Finally, Jane walked to the couch and sat down. She waited for Maura to follow, and, when they were both settled, she started.

"Maura, I've been thinking. I spent half the night awake thinking." Maura nodded but didn't interrupt. "I think that I'm scared."

"Of Hoyt?"

"No, Maura," Jane shook her head. "Of myself... of you... of us... Of this," she motioned between them. "It scares the hell out of me." For once Maura didn't correct her on her language. Instead, she sat and tried to assimilate the information Jane was giving her. "I don't know what to do with this. Tell me, what do you want to do with this?"

"I'd like to explore the possibilities, but I don't want to do anything that would make you uncomfortable, Jane."

"Too late for that," she gave a humorless chuckle. "I don't even know where to start." She closed her eyes and leaned forward to rest her head against her left hand. "Does this change who I am? If I... I mean, if we go through with this, does that change me?"

"All intimate relationships change an individual."

"That's," she sighed. "That's not what I meant, Maura. I mean, if I admit out loud what's going on in my head, does that mean I'm really a different person than who I was yesterday? Than who I thought I was all this time? Does changing who I want to spend my life with change who I am? You know, on a ... on a fundamental basis."

"I don't see how it would. You are the same person I knew yesterday. How would being with me make you different?"

They sat there staring at each other for a long moment.

"Jane, in a way, we are already together. I have observed romantic relationships that were not as close as our platonic relationship is. To be honest, I don't understand how that can be, but, then again, the desire to procreate is a strong biological urge."

Jane laughed. "Only you would pull a reproductive fact at a time like this."

"But, it's the truth. It is a strong urge that is..."

"I know, Maura. But, let's not talk about that right now. Let's finish this first, okay?"

Maura chewed on her bottom lip as she nodded yes.

Jane leaned forward to place her elbows on her knees. She stared at the blank tv. "I'm not an easy person to deal with."

"I am aware."

"My job makes dating me very stressful. I could die or be seriously hurt at any given point in time."

"I know."

"I scare easily."

"So do I."

"I've never done this sort of thing before."

"Neither have I."

"What do we do?"

"Start slowly? What does one do when one first starts dating a person?"

Jane glanced over her shoulder. Maura was watching her waiting for a reply.

"Well, if this was high school and you were a cute guy, we'd make out." Jane grinned. "But, I'm not ready for that."

"Baby steps, Jane."

For once, Jane didn't have to ask for clarification. She turned toward Maura and reached out to place a hand at the side of the blonde's face. "I want to make the first move. I really do, but I'm not sure I can." She ran her thumb over Maura's lips. "Help me."

Maura leaned forward and placed a kiss gently on Jane's lips. It was the barest of touches, feather light. But, it was enough for Jane to know that she wanted more.

She leaned into Maura, kissing her harder, pulling Maura to her as the kiss deepened. As it ended, Jane pulled back and gazed into Maura's eyes.

"I won't lie. This is going to be hard. I might run."

"I believe that you will come back." Maura smiled. "You always have."

"I'm glad you noticed."

Jane leaned her forehead against Maura's. They sat there enjoying the new found feeling of closeness until both of their phones rang.

"Looks like we have a case." Jane sighed as she pulled away from Maura.

"Shall we pick this up later?"

"Yes. Count on it."

With that, they answered their phones and moved to take on another case.


	3. Chapter 3

"It's late, Jane. Perhaps you should go home and try to get some rest?" Maura smiled gently at the detective.

"Yeah, I came down here to," Jane ran a hand across the back of her neck. "To, you know, walk you to your car."

Maura smiled. "That's sweet of you, Jane. I'll be ready in a moment."

Jane watched as Maura gathered her coat and purse after putting away her lab coat. "Okay, I'm ready." She walked up to the ME and tentatively reached toward her arm but pulled back at the last moment. Maura simply continued to smile up at the detective. "It's okay, Jane. Are you ready?"

Jane nodded, and they headed toward the door.

"Have you eaten yet?" Jane held the elevator door to allow Maura to go in first. "I was thinking of going to that corner café that stays open all night." Jane could feel herself fidgeting. She'd asked Maura to have dinner with her a hundred times, but this time it felt different. She was nervous.

"I haven't." Maura looked over at Jane. She placed a hand over Jane's to stop the brunette's thumb from continuing to run over the scar on her other hand. "I'd love to go. Shall I drive?"

"No, I'll drive." Jane smiled. She kept her eyes glued to their joined hands. As the elevator doors opened, Jane jumped a little, and Maura let go of her hands.

They walked in relative silence to Jane's car. She opened the door for Maura and then hopped into the driver's side.

"I… I'm sorry, Maura." She chuckled nervously, "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"It's okay, Jane. I think I understand."

"You do? I wish you'd explain it to me."

"I believe this might be considered a first date."

"Oh," Jane chewed on the inside of her lip for a moment. "Oh, man, I guess you're right." She glanced over at Maura. "I feel like I should be taking you some place fancy, now."

"I think the diner will be fine, Jane." Maura reached over and took Jane's hand. "Would you be okay if I were to hold your hand at the diner?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure." She considered Maura's question for a moment. "I don't know how I would handle it if one of the guys came in and saw us holding hands. It might end badly, and I don't want to ruin this before it even gets started."

"If you're worried that I'd hold it against you if you pulled away because one of our friends or coworkers came into the diner, don't be. I understand that there is a delicate balance at work here between familiarity and the unfamiliar experiences of dating the same sex. I know and understand the social constraints at work here, Jane." She gave Jane's hand a squeeze. "It's okay, Jane. I won't mind."

Jane nodded as she pulled into the diner. "I… I promise to try not to screw up, okay?"

"Okay, however, should you do something I find… inappropriate… rest assured that I will let you know." Jane gave Maura a look that screamed she was now terrified. "Relax, Jane. What I mean is that I'll alert you to it once we're alone, and I promise I'll try not to put you on the defensive."

"Yeah, that'd be good." Jane slipped out of the car and walked around to open the door and help Maura out. "Let's go eat."


	4. Chapter 4

They took a seat at a corner booth in the back, gave their orders, and thanked the waitress for their drinks.

Jane wrapped her hands around her coffee mug as Maura sipped her water. The brunette stared at the white diner mug, not sure what to say or do.

"Jane, do your hands hurt?"

"What?" Her head shot up. "Why would you say that?"

"You normally wrap your hands around warm cups of coffee when your hands hurt." Maura gave her an encouraging smile. "Are they bothering you?"

"They're fine," the brunette quickly pulled her hands away from the mug, but the grimace she had on her face gave away her lie.

"Give me your hands." Maura reached across the table and laid her hands down, palms up.

"No, Maura. I'm fine."

"Let me help, Jane." The blonde continued to gently smile at her. "I can help."

Reluctantly, Jane placed her hands on top of Maura's, palms down. Maura gave them a reassuring squeeze before pulling her hands out from under Jane's. "Leave this one flat on the table." Maura gave the back of Jane's right hand a gentle pat. "I assume your left hand is more bothersome than your right?" Jane nodded. Maura turned Jane's left hand over and cradled it between her two hands so that her thumbs came from either side and rested in her palm. With gentle motions, Maura began to rub Jane's hand.

Jane swallowed hard. It felt good. It felt good in more than one way.

She closed her eyes and allowed herself to relax into the feel of the other woman's touch. She normally didn't allow anyone to touch her hands, but there was safety here. She signed as Maura switched hands.

After long moments of contently allowing herself to trust Maura's touch, she realized that Maura had stopped rubbing her hands and was simply holding Jane's right hand in her left.

Jane looked across the table and blushed. Then, she smiled and laughed. "Thank you."

"Of course," Maura started to rub her thumb almost absentmindedly across Jane's palm. "Do they feel any better?"

"Yeah, actually," she flexed her right hand. "Where did you learn how to do that?"

"I've studied some reflexology methods, and," Jane saw a slight blush begin to rise up Maura's neck, "I've also studied various massage techniques."

"Really?" Jane couldn't stop her smirk. "Well, it paid off." She took a sip of her coffee.

When their food arrived, Jane was surprised that her immediate response wasn't to pull away so the waitress wouldn't notice them holding hands. Instead, she was slightly disappointed that they had to stop holding hands to eat.

The conversation was what it always was as they ate. They talked about work, Jane's family, their animals, and assorted other topics. It was easy. It felt right.

"It's getting late. We better go." Jane stood up and offered Maura her hand. At Maura's touch, Jane shivered. If the blonde noticed, she didn't say anything, for which Jane was eternally grateful.

"It's uncomfortably cool out here. I should have taken my jacket with me instead of leaving it in my car." Maura wrapped her arms around herself. Jane pulled her suit jacket off and helped Maura into it. "Thank you, Jane." Maura gave her a smile. It felt very personal to Jane. It wasn't a smile she could recall seeing the other woman give before.

"You're welcome," she opened Maura's door. As she slid into her seat, she noticed Maura yawn. "You okay to drive home? I can take you home and pick you up tomorrow if you want."

"I'll be fine, but thank you for asking." There was that smile again.

Jane parked and walked Maura to her car. She wanted to make sure Maura was safely in her car before she hopped back into her own car to drive home.

She was inside her apartment, after walking Joe, before she realized that Maura still had her suit jacket. She smiled. She was surprisingly okay with that.

* * *

**This one is progressing a bit slower than the other storyline, but I think it's coming together well. There's something poetic about Maura being the reassured one in this blooming relationship... I dunno :shrug:**


	5. Chapter 5

"Rizzoli, are you wearing makeup?" Jane scowled at Korsak as she strolled into the squad room.

"No. You know I don't wear that stuff." She stopped at his desk and debated handing him his coffee.

"I'm serious. You look different. Did you get a good night's sleep for a change or something?" He grabbed for his cup, but Jane yanked it out of his reach.

"No, I had a late night, actually." She held his cup away from him as she took a sip from her own.

"You and Dr. Isles stay late?" He eyed the cup in her hand. "Hey, come on," he gave her a pleading look.

"Sort of," she shrugged. "We left about eight and grabbed some dinner before heading home." She handed him the cup and some sugar packets. "Anything on the case?"

"Not since last night. Frost's digging around through the computer system looking for matches on the car fibers we found. Dr. Isles is finishing up her autopsy report, and I'm looking for any connection between the victim and where we found him. What are you going to do?"

"I think I'll go down to the morgue and see what Maura's found so far that we can use." Jane turned to head toward the elevators when Maura walked into the room.

Jane couldn't help but smile. Maura was wearing her suit jacket from the day before. It looked good on her. The little black dress she had on under it looked equally good, and the heels made her legs look amazing. It took Jane a moment to refocus. By the time she was back on track, Maura was standing in front of Korsak's desk looking expectantly from one detective to the other.

"Good morning, I've finished the autopsy report. I thought you'd appreciate it if I brought the completed report to you." She smiled brightly as she handed Jane the report.

"Yeah, thanks," Jane took it. She could feel the smile covering her face, and she was pretty sure she looked like the biggest dork in the world. "Anything good?"

"Some lacerations, a cracked rib, a punctured lung, and a stab wound to the upper torso."

"Cause of death?"

"The punctured lung," Maura moved to sit down in Jane's desk chair. Jane watched her move across the room and couldn't stop her eyes from roaming over the blonde's legs as Maura crossed them at the knee. "The autopsy results indicate that whatever was used to stab the victim entered the body at a 47 degree angle. It was long enough to puncture the lung and there was enough force at the point of entry to crack the rib where the weapon struck against the ribcage."

Jane was silent for a moment. She shook her head and looked down at the report. "Any idea what the weapon was?"

"Based on the size of the wound and length I believe it was at least 24 inches long, round, with a pointed tip and a flat surface on the opposing end that is perpendicular to the shaft of the weapon."

"A handle." Jane raised an eyebrow at the ME.

"That is one possibility." Maura leaned back in the chair and crossed her arms under her chest.

Jane looked back at Korsak as she rolled her eyes. "Right. So, what fits that kind of description?"

"A fireplace poker." Jane turned completely around. "What?" He shrugged. "I have a fireplace. Mine looks like that."

"Didn't our suspect have one, too?"

"I think so. Guess that's good enough for a warrant. I'll call the DA's office." Korsak picked up the phone and started dialing.

Jane walked over to her desk to look down at Maura. "You're wearing my jacket."

"Do you mind? It was still chilly this morning, and I thought it would accent this dress well." Again, Maura gave her _that_ smile.

"No, I don't mind. I kind of like it." Jane held out her hand to Maura and helped her stand up. "When do I get it back?"

"Tonight?" Maura stepped around Jane to head toward the door.

"What time?" Jane crossed her arms. She gave Maura a smirk.

"Let's say 7. I believe that will give you plenty of time to follow through with your warrant and complete the arrest." Maura walked out of the room. Jane watched her go before she turned around to check on Korsak who was staring hard at her.

"What?"

"Was Dr. Isles wearing your jacket from yesterday?"

Jane tried not to blush. "No," It was clear that Korsak didn't believe her. "Did you get the warrant or what?"

"Yeah, it'll be here soon." He eyed her over the rim of his cup as he sipped his coffee. "Did Dr. Isles ask you to dinner at her place tonight?"

"Yeah, and?" Jane was getting flustered. She could feel herself starting to panic. "We have dinner together on a pretty regular basis, Korsak. What's the problem? Jealous because you have to eat frozen dinners in front of the tv?" She threw her hands up and turned around. With a grunt, she plopped down into her chair.

"Why are you so defensive all of a sudden?"

"Why are you so nosey all of a sudden?" Jane flipped the autopsy report open and started reading. "I have work to do."

* * *

**Will Jane cut and run, or will she stick with it now that she knows someone suspects? Yeah, I don't really know either...**


	6. Chapter 6

Jane knocked on the door and waited. She nervously shifted her weight as she moved the bottle of wine from one hand to the other. After a moment, the door opened to a smiling Maura. "Hi! Come in, dinner is almost ready."

Jane stepped inside and handed Maura the bottle. "I thought you might want to try this." She glanced at the floor trying not to sound as unsure as she felt. "I did a little research on it, and this came really highly recommended for people who, you know, like wine."

"Cocannon Vinyard," Maura turned the bottled in her hand to look at the label. "It's an '07 Cabernet Sauvignon." She glanced over at Jane who was trying to look anywhere but at the blonde. "I've heard of this, and I've been trying to find it locally but haven't had any luck. Jane, where did you find it?"

"I had a friend at the bar order it for me." She looked up and gave Maura a small smile. "Is it okay?"

"It's fantastic. I'm very impressed." Maura smiled and leaned up to place a kiss on Jane's cheek. "Thank you. That was very thoughtful."

Jane glanced away again. "Sure," She could feel herself blushing, and she realized this was only the second time that Maura had kissed her in any fashion. That made her blush more. "So... what's for dinner?" Jane followed as Maura guided them toward the dining room. "It smells great."

"I thought I would bake the chicken dish you like." Maura threw a smile over her shoulder to Jane as she walked into the kitchen and pulled down two wine glasses. "I also have dessert." She opened the bottle of wine and poured. "Strawberries and fresh cream?" She walked over to the table and placed the glasses by the plates that were already there.

"Sounds good. Is there anything I can do to help?" Jane was starting to fidget. She ran her fingers over the scars on her hand, and she kept shifting her weight. The fact that she was so nervous being with Maura was making her fidgeting worse. This was Maura. She _knew_ her. This wasn't some stranger. So, why was she so unsure of herself?

Maura placed a hand on top of Jane's and gave her a reassuring smile. "You can help me move the food to the table. It's ready."

* * *

"This was really delicious, Maura. Thank you for cooking," Jane looked across the table to find the blonde beaming at her.

"I'm glad you like." She took a sip of wine. "I'm also very impressed with this wine choice. It really is very nice. Do you think we could get another bottle?"

Jane nodded. "Actually, we have a case." She felt shy. It was unsettling for the detective.

"We do?" Maura tilted her head to one side. "Where is it?"

"In my car. I thought it might look strange to show up at your door step with a case of wine, you know?"

"It wouldn't be the first time." They chuckled. "Why don't you go get it while I clean up and pull together the dessert?"

"Sure," Jane stood up in a not-so-suave fashion and gave Maura an apologetic glance as she headed to the door.

* * *

"Where do you find fresh cream in Boston?" Jane dipped another strawberry in the bowl and took a bite.

"I have my ways," Maura gave her _that_ smile again and reached over to wipe some cream from Jane's chin.

"I guess you're not going to tell me?" Jane watched Maura's finger as it made its way to Maura's mouth.

"No, I don't think so." Maura licked the cream from her finger. Jane swallowed. "Jane." Jane didn't move. "Jane, you need to breathe or you'll pass out."

Jane shook her head. "What? I'm cool." She took a gulp of wine. "I'm great."

Maura laughed. "Yes, I can see that. Are you finished with the strawberries?" She reached for the bowls to put them away.

"Yeah, I think so." Jane poured more wine and refilled Maura's glass as well. "I'm going to sit on the couch."

"Okay, I won't be long."

* * *

Jane sank down into the familiar sofa in Maura's living room. She closed her eyes and tried to think about what was happening tonight. There was no doubt that was their second date. She knew that, and it felt strange. Everything was so familiar, yet everything was so different. She was having problems processing. "Korsak noticed you were wearing my jacket today," she called out as a way of focusing on something else.

"Oh?" Maura called back from the kitchen. "What did you tell him?" She came around the sofa and sat down next to Jane.

"I told him it wasn't mine." Jane felt guilty about saying it now that she was telling Maura what had happened.

"I see." Maura placed her hand on Jane's arm. "Are you certain it was okay for me to wear it? You know I would have taken it off if..."

"I wanted you to wear it." Jane looked over at Maura and placed her hand on top of the blonde's. "I really liked seeing you in it." She scrunched her face up in thought for a moment. "It just freaked me out a little that Korsak noticed." She shook her head. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing, Jane?"

"I should have told him the truth."

"I understand why you didn't. As I've told you before, I am willing to do what we need until you're more comfortable."

Jane gave a weak smile. She sighed heavily and placed her glass down on the coffee table. "I'm not sure how to handle all of this. I'm scared. I'm nervous. I'm excited. I'm," she searched for the words. "I'm confused."

"In what way?"

"I don't know... where are our boundaries now, Maura? What's okay and what isn't? Our lives are so mixed up with each other already... I mean," she sighed again. "This won't be a secret for long. It just won't happen. It can't. Too many of our friends are cops. Cops... they catch on to things quickly, you know?"

Maura nodded and pulled her hand away. "Yes, I can understand your concern. What would you like to do?"

Jane turned on the sofa to face Maura. She considered the woman in front of her for a moment. Gingerly, she reached out and lightly touched the hair framing Maura's face. She tilted her head to the side as she ran her fingers through Maura's hair. "I'm not sure." Her hand came to rest on the back of Maura's neck. "No, that's not true. I do know what I want to do right now."

Maura licked her lips. "What would that be, Jane?"

Jane pulled Maura to her. They kissed. They took long moments to taste the wine lingering on the other woman's lips and appreciate the feel of being in each other's arms. Jane pulled away and leaned her forehead against Maura's. "I don't want to screw this up." She blew out a long stream of air. "So, I'm going to do something that I wouldn't normally do when I want to be with someone as badly as I do you right now."

Maura let Jane stand up. "What's that?"

"Go home to my own bed." She tried to give Maura her best reassuring smile. "But, I'm not running." She reached down and pulled the blonde to her feet. She kissed her again, sliding her hands under the shoulders of the jacket Maura was still wearing. As she broke the kiss, she pulled the jacket off of the very surprised doctor. "I'll just take this for safe keeping." She smirked at Maura as she walked to the door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Maura. Have a good night."

Maura stood in her living dumbfounded by the kiss Jane had just given her. She closed her eyes and centered herself. Jane wasn't running. This was a good sign.

* * *

**This story gives me warm fuzzies ^_^**


	7. Chapter 7

"Jane, it's about time you came over."

Jane rolled her eyes as she leaned over to kiss her mother on the cheek. "It's nice to see you, too, Ma."

"So? You've been too busy to call your mother?" Angela walked toward the kitchen. "Are you hungry?"

"No, I'm not hungry. I just came by the say hi." Jane followed her mother into the kitchen. "I know how you get when Frankie and I don't call or see you for a couple of days."

"How I get? Janie, you make it sound like I'm sort of crazy." Angela started making coffee. "Well, are you going to tell me where you've been that you've been too busy to talk to me?"

"We've been working a case for the past four days." Jane could feel the weariness settling on her. She didn't really like to talk about her work with her mother. She worried that she'd give details that were too gruesome for a civilian to deal with.

"Did you catch them?" Angela leaned against the counter as she waited for the coffee to brew.

"We have somebody in custody. Maura's pretty certain it's our guy based on DNA samples." Jane moved around the kitchen to get down some coffee mugs and pull out the sugar and creamer.

"Pretty certain? That doesn't sound like Dr. Isles."

Jane chuckled, "You know Maura. She's never absolutely anything." Jane rolled her eyes and handed her mother a mug. "'Jane,' she says, 'There's no way to be 100% certain of anything. There's always a very small probability of error. Therefore, I cannot give you an absolute answer.' She's always saying things like that. Drives me crazy." Jane was smiling broadly. She was slowly coming to the realization that Maura's need for accuracy was endearing.

"How _is_ Dr. Isles? I haven't seen her in a few weeks." Angela poured the coffee. "You should bring her over for dinner on Sunday. You know," the older woman moved to the table and settled down, "She's always welcome. She's always so nice and polite."

Jane sat down across from her mother and ran her hand across the back of her neck as she tried to figure out how to talk to Angela about Maura. "Yeah, she's good," she took a sip of her coffee. "Oh man, how did I forget to put sugar in this?" She made a face as she fetched the sugar from the counter.

"The sugar's on the left. The salt is on the right, Janie." Her mother was laughing.

Jane shot her an annoyed look as she sat back down with a spoon and the sugar. "Maura told you about that?"

"She might have mentioned it at some point." Angela's eyes twinkled with mischief as she watched her daughter over the rim of her mug. "You know, you could bring that story up tomorrow as an icebreaker."

"Why? What's so special about tomorrow?"

"Cal Tidsdale is in town, and…"

"Ma, no." Jane pointed at her mother and gave an adamant shake of her head.

"Janie, he's a good man. He's got a great job working for that medical company."

"He's a salesman, Ma, and he gives me the creeps. He's got weird, greasy used car salesman vibes." Jane gave a shudder.

"But, he's so nice! And, you can't tell me you don't think he's handsome. Come on, Jane, just come to dinner and _talk_ to him."

Jane didn't bother to hide her exasperation. "Ma," she sighed heavily, "Look, I'm not going to date him. I'm not going to date _any_ guy, okay?"

"Jane, just because you haven't found the right man yet doesn't mean that you won't. But, you've got to put yourself out there. I mean, it's not like the perfect guy is just going to fall into your lap." Angela frowned at her daughter. "You've got to be open to at least _meeting_ people, sweetie."

Jane bit down. She felt it. This was a now or never thing. "Maura and I are dating." Angela sat back heavily in her chair. Jane waited for her mother to react. After a few moments of silence, Jane decided she should probably just push forward. "We've been dating for a few weeks now. I… I'm not really sure where it's going, but," Jane looked up at her mother. Angela was still blankly staring at her daughter. "Ma?"

The older woman shook her head. She slowly took a sip of coffee and sat the mug down on the table carefully. "This doesn't get you out of giving me grandchildren."

Jane laughed. Of all the things her mother could have said, this was the response that actually surprised her the least. "So, you're okay with this?"

Angela considered for a moment. "Does she make you happy?" Jane smiled. "I think that answers that." Angela reached across the table and laid her hand over her daughter's. "You know your father and I will support you no matter what, Jane. How serious is this?"

Jane shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. I mean, I've never done this kind of thing before, and, I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty nervous and scared about it." She gave her mother a guarded look. "I don't want to mess this up. But, Maura, she's been really understanding. She hasn't pushed me or tried to force me into doing anything I wasn't comfortable with, you know?"

Angela nodded. "Yeah, that's a good thing with you."

"Thanks, Ma," Jane mumbled as she looked down into her mug of coffee. "We haven't told anyone yet. I'm just not ready to deal with that right now. You're the first one to know." She looked up, giving her mother a pleading expression. "Ma, can we keep this quiet for a little while? I really need to see where all of this is going first before I have everyone in the family cracking jokes about tool belts and mullets."

Her mother gave her hand a pat and pulled away to take another sip of coffee. She sighed, "Jane, are you afraid of how we'll react? We're your _family_. We love you, no matter who you date."

Jane ran a finger and thumb across the bridge of her nose. "No, it's not that. I mean, I know you guys love me." She shook her head. "It's that… Ma, I need to be comfortable with me first. Does that make sense?"

"Jane, how long have you had feelings like this for other women?"

Jane looked around the kitchen, trying to gather her thoughts. "I don't know… always? I just didn't want to admit it to myself." She put her head in her hand as she leaned her elbow against the table. "When I was a teenager, I knew I never really felt the same way about guys as other girls, but I always figured that was because I was more of a tomboy, you know? Most of my friends were guys, and they were all like my brothers. You don't date your brothers, that's just weird… and gross." She glanced up and smirked. Her mother chuckled and nodded. Jane inhaled, "I had a crush on a teacher in high school."

"Who?"

"Looking back? Mrs. Carter."

"Your 10th grade English teacher?" Angela gave Jane a hard look. "She was _way_ too old for you."

"Ma, not a good time."

Angela flushed for a moment. "Sorry, sweetie."

Jane made a dismissive gesture with her hand. "I figured it was a fluke. You're always hearing how girls sometimes like other girls when they're young but get married and settle down later. So, I just figured Mrs. Carter was my one girl crush, and I'd move on."

"But you didn't?"

"No."

"But, you dated in high school."

"Yeah, to make you happy. You're always on me to find a nice boy, and I just wasn't ready to admit to myself, or anyone else, that I didn't want a nice boy."

Angela frowned. Jane could tell she was going over something in her head. "Janie, is Maura your first girlfriend?"

"Girlfriend? Yes."

"So, you've been with other women?"

Jane swallowed hard. "I've fooled around with a few women, but nothing big."

"Did you sleep with them?"

"Ma!"

"It's okay, Jane. I'm your _mother_, you can tell me anything. I won't judge you, sweetie." Angela gave Jane her best reassuring smile.

"God, I can't believe you just asked me that." She leaned back in her chair and ran the palms of her hands over her eyes. "No. Okay? I've never slept with another woman."

"But, you've slept with a man?"

"Ma, I'm not going there."

"I'll take that a yes." Angela nodded to herself. "Sweetie, if you've never _been with_ a woman, then how can you know? Maybe you're just curious?"

Jane shook her head. "No, I'm not just curious. I'm just not _attracted_ to men. I never have been. Never… not once in my entire life, have I ever looked at any man anywhere and thought that I wanted to be with him in any way."

"But, you do with women."

"All the time."

Angela's eyebrows shot up. "I see," she shrugged, "Okay, Jane. I can keep this between the two of us for right now. But, I don't know how you're going to keep that secret for long."

"I know. It's probably not going to happen. But, I just need to ease myself out…"

"Of the closet?"

"Ma, really?"

"That's the phrase isn't it?" She smirked as she finished the coffee in her mug. "You know, I'm going to have go do some research on all of this. I have to be ready when you propose…"

"No, Ma." Jane rolled her eyes. "Are you really going to start in on me, _right now_?"

"I just want to be prepared." Angela stood up and took both empty mugs to the sink. "So, is Dr. Isles coming to family dinner Sunday as family or a guest?"

"What makes you think she's coming?"

"Because I want you to bring her, and you wouldn't want to disappoint your mother, would you? So, friend or family?"

Jane sighed as she stood to leave. "Let me think about it, okay?" Angela gave her doubtful look. "I have a couple of days. I promise I'll let you know before Sunday."

"Okay, Jane, but don't forget." Angela reached out and pulled her daughter in for a hug. "You know I love you, sweetie."

"I love you, too, Ma," Jane bent down and kissed her mother on the cheek. "I have to go. I'll talk to you later."

"Be safe," Angela yelled to her daughter's retreating form.

"Always," Jane returned as she walked out the door.

* * *

**I think I'm in love with this story.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Wow, you guys are _hard_ on Angela. 0.- **

**

* * *

**

"Jane, we're due at your parents' house in an hour." Maura walked into Jane's bedroom to check on her.

"Hey, whoa, can you knock?" Jane turned around to keep Maura from seeing her shirtless.

"Honestly, Jane, it's not the first time I've seen you without a shirt," Maura strolled through the room and sat down on the bed. "Why are you taking so long? In ordinary circumstances, we would be leaving by now."

"First of all, you saw me shirtless _before_ we started dating. It's a little different now," she pulled the t-shirt in her hand on and turned around. "Second of all," she sighed, "I don't know what to wear."

"Jane Rizzoli is having wardrobe issues?" Maura chuckled. She hopped down and opened Jane's closet. "Well, let's see what we have to work with."

"I suddenly feel violated." Jane sat down on her bed and watched Maura dig through her clothing. "You know, I _can_ dress myself."

"Yes, I can see that," Maura turned around to show Jane a bright, burnt orange undershirt.

"It wasn't one of my better purchases. We all have off days, okay?"

"Well, that settles it."

"What?"

"We're going shopping."

"What? _Now?_ Maura, we have to be at Ma and Pop's in 45 minutes. We don't have time to go shopping, and what's wrong with what I already have?"

"You said it yourself. You don't have anything to wear." Maura closed the doors with a definitive thud.

"No, I _said_ I didn't know _what_ to wear, not that I _didn't_ _have_ anything to wear. I'm wearing something right now. See?" Jane lifted her arms to display the t-shirt she had on.

"I hardly think a Rolling Stones t-shirt is going to go over well with your mother, Jane." Maura tilted her head to the side as she considered what to do. "Why are you having such a difficult time?"

"I don't know." Jane shrugged.

"Jane." The detective flinched. In one simple inflection, she had heard a volley of different thoughts come from Maura. It was a losing battle.

Jane fidgeted for a moment. "Okay, Ma wanted to know if you're coming as my friend or my girlfriend."

"You told her?" Maura's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Yeah." Jane was starting to blush.

"How did she react?" Maura sat down beside Jane, and they turned to face each other.

"Okay, I guess." Jane gave a weak smile. "She said it doesn't get me out of giving her grandchildren."

"That doesn't surprise me." The brunette was clearly confused. "Remember that night I came in and you and your mother were discussing your 'perfect mate'?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"She said, 'Sweetie, you know your father and I love you no matter what.' And, when you asked her what she was talking about, she said, 'I think you're going to have to be a little honest with yourself before you can be happy, sweetie. But, I understand, and I won't pressure you on this one.'" Maura put a reassuring hand on Jane's knee.

"She knew?" The brunette ran a hand through her hair. "All this time… _she _knew and _I_… well, how could she… I mean, _why_ didn't she _say_ anything? Why keep trying to set me up with those _awful_ men?"

"Perhaps she was setting you up with undesirable men on purpose?"

"To what end, Maura?"

"I'm not certain. Based on what you've told me and what I've seen of your mother, she seems to be quite good at turning a situation around to be advantageous for her loved ones."

"Did you just call my mother manipulative?"

"Yes, but in a good way."

Jane stood up and paced in front of Maura for a moment. "Okay, so she knew this _whole_ time. I can deal with that. But, that means," she stopped pacing and faced Maura. "We should probably go shopping. Do you have something in mind for me to wear?"

Maura smiled brightly. "Now that you mention it, yes, and it's on the way to your parents' house. It will coordinate very well with what I'm wearing today."

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you and Ma planned this. _Did_ you plan this? Don't lie to me, Maura. You know I can tell if you're lying."

"We didn't plan it. However, it _is_ curiously convenient now that you mention it." Maura stood up and grabbed Jane's hand. "If we leave now, we'll have enough time to stop, buy the outfit, get you changed, and make it there on time." She pulled Jane toward the door.

"Wait… did you say _outfit_…"


	9. Chapter 9

"Ma, sorry we're late." Jane stepped into the kitchen. "We had to make a pit stop. We brought you flowers." She held them in front of her and gave her best 'I'm sorry' smile.

Angela turned around to grab the flowers only to stop in her tracks. "Jane, you look great! Is that a new outfit?"

"We bought it today. Don't you think she looks stunning in it?" Maura grinned. "I told her maroon was a good color for her."

"You're right it is, and I see it's also a good color on you, Dr. Isles." Angela took the flowers and began placing them in a vase.

"Ma, you should call her Maura." Jane ran a hand across the back of her neck. She closed her eyes and pulled her mouth tight for a moment. "Girlfriend."

"Good." Angela smiled at the blonde. "I'm glad to see Jane is finally coming to her senses."

"Thank you, Mrs. Rizzoli." Maura smiled at Jane and leaned in to give her a playful shove.

"Call me Angela! In fact," she walked over to the doctor and placed her hands on the other woman's shoulders. "You can call me 'Ma' if you want."

Maura's eyes went wide for a moment. Jane chuckled. "That's very kind of you Mrs... Angela. Please do call me Maura." She glanced over to Jane seeking help.

"Ma, what are you cooking?"

"I thought I'd try something different. I've been watching that cooking tv channel, and I thought I'd give one of their recipes a try." She walked over to the oven and opened the door. "It's Texas Briquette." She pulled out the the oven shelf and opened the roasting pan. "Ah? What do you think? Smells good, doesn't it?"

"Wow, Ma, that's," Jane's eyes widened, "A big piece of meat."

"Here I was thinking you were dating Maura now," Frankie walked in, taking a wide route around his sister. "Smells good, Ma." He kissed Angela on the cheek.

"Hey, be nice to your sister." Angela gave her son a gentle push before closing the oven again.

"Wait a minute, how... how does Frankie know?" Jane threw her hands up. "Ma, you promised!"

"I didn't say anything! Jane, sweetie, I promise I didn't." Her mother looked over to her son.

"Janie, please, you two are color coordinated." Frankie rolled his eyes and stole a piece of garlic bread.

"Color... how do you even know what that means?" She growled and crossed her arms. Maura smirked.

"Janie, you're my sister. Come on, you don't think I don't know what's going on with you?" He dodged out of his mother's reach and popped a piece of bread in his mouth. "Besides, what kind of cop would I be if I couldn't figure out who my big sister was dating?"

Maura tried to cover a chuckle. "Angela, is there anything I can do to help?"

"Aren't you a dear?" Angela handed her a cutting board. "Maybe you could help with the salad?"

"Ma..." Jane reached for the cutting board.

Maura intercepted. "I'd be happy to." She took the board and stepped over to a clean space on the cabinet to put the salad together.

"Jane, she's practically _family_. I don't know why you're acting like this anyway." Angela batted at her daughter's hand. "She offered, and you said it yourself. She's here as your _girlfriend_, not you just your friend. That means _family_ and not just guest, and you know that family helps in the kitchen."

"Finally," Frankie grabbed the plates to set the table.

"Hey, shut up Frankie!"

"Jane, be nice to your brother." Angela scowled at her children.

Maura continued to calmly work on putting the salad together. "Jane, would you please hand me the dressing?"

"What?" Jane's exasperation was clearly high.

"The salad dressing?" Maura smiled gently at the brunette.

"Oh, yeah, sure," Jane walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed the bottle.

"Well, that's a first." Frankie smirked as he filled glasses with ice.

"Be nice," Angela's warning came from the living room where she was checking how long they had until the game started.

"What are you talking about, Frankie?" Jane pulled the silverware out.

He shrugged. "It's just that, you know, normally you'd blow your top by now. One question from Maura, and you're all... I don't know," he shrugged again.

"Civil, collected, temperate," Maura handed the salad bowl over to Jane. "Calm?"

"Yeah... yeah, something like that," Frankie shot Jane a 'what the heck' look? Jane shrugged and headed to the table with the salad bowl and silverware.

* * *

"So, how long have you two been dating?" Frank handed Jane a beer and sat down next to her on the sofa to get ready for the game.

"Thanks," she took a drink as she considered what to say. "Officially?"

"Is there any other kind?" He snorted as he settled down into his chair. "You and Frankie never could give me and your mother a straight answer."

"Where is Frankie anyway?" She glanced around.

"He had to take off; something about a call." Frank leaned back to glance into the kitchen. "Your mother and Maura seem to be getting along pretty good."

"Yeah, they always have," she leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees.

"Jane?"

She shook her head. "I don't know, Pop," she stared at the bottle in her hands. "I mean, I guess officially we've been dating for about a month now."

"But?"

"But," she leaned back against the sofa. "You know we've always spent a lot of time together doing stuff."

"Yeah, but it's not the same, is it?" He leaned forward and placed a hand on his daughter's knee. "Are you happy, Janie?"

She sat there for a moment and considered. "Yeah... yeah, I am. Maura, she gets me, you know? We," she made a vague motion with her hand, "we get each other. I don't really know how to explain it, Pop. I just know that I don't want to mess this up, and that _has _to mean something, right?"

He gave her knee a pat before settling back down in his chair. "Yeah, it does." He nodded to himself. "I still feel that way about your mother."

"You do?" Jane gave him a weak smile.

"Sure. Of course, you know your mother. She wouldn't let me mess it up even if I tried." They both chuckled, and then Frank's face fell into a serious look as he pinned his daughter with his eyes. "Maura won't let you either, Janie."

She cleared her throat. "You think so?"

"She's here isn't she? She got you to dress like that, didn't she?"

Jane nodded. "Yeah," she stood up. "Pop, I think I'm going to grab Maura and take off. You okay with watching the game by yourself?"

"Yeah, go spend some quality time with your girl." He smiled. She bent over and gave him a peck on the cheek.

* * *

"Maura, thanks for the help. I wish Jane was as thorough as you with the cleaning," Angela placed the final dish back in it's spot in the cabinet.

"My pleasure, Angela." Maura turned to see the brunette enter. "Jane! Isn't the game about to start?"

"Yeah, but I thought maybe we'd go watch it at my place." She tossed the bottle in the trash. "Are you ready to go?"

"Of course," Maura turned to Angela, "Thank you for dinner. It was lovely."

Angela beamed a smile from her daughter to the blonde in front of her. "Anytime, sweetie. You know you're always welcomed." She gave Maura a hug and reached for Jane.

"She's a keeper, sweetie," she whispered as she hugged her daughter. "You know, you're not going to mess this up." She pulled away and wiped a few stray hairs from Jane's face. "You've been working on it for too long already."

"How is it you always know what Pop and I talk about?"

"Maybe because I'm your mother? Or, maybe because I have good hearing," she smirked at her daughter. "But, I'm not telling you which. Now, go spend some time with Maura. I know you two probably don't get a lot with all the working you do all the time."

"Thanks, Ma. Love you, see you later." Jane ran her arm through Maura's and started for the door.

"Love you, too, sweetie. Call me!" Angela yelled as the door closed.


	10. Chapter 10

Maura settled into her corner of Jane's sofa, wine glass in hand. "Jane, did we really come back to your apartment simply to watch the game?"

Jane slid down into the opposite corner with her beer. "Would you settle for maybe?"

The doctor snickered. "Do I ever settle for less than accurate information?" She sat her glass down on the coffee table and crossed her arms.

"No," Jane started to take a drink of her beer, but decided against it and set the bottle down. "Okay, what about," she took a deep breath, "I wanted to spend some quality alone time with my," she stopped and looked down at her hands. "With my… girlfriend?" She ventured a glance up at the woman beside her.

"I think she would like that very much," Maura placed a hand on Jane's. "How would you like to spend this quality time with your girlfriend?" She gave Jane a playful grin.

Jane let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm… Well, I was thinking that maybe," she ran her tongue along the inside of her teeth as she thought about the best way to go about expressing what she was thinking. Much to her irritation, Jane could feel the blush rising up her neck. "Well, that maybe we could, you know," she shook her head. "Never mind." Jane tried to pull her hands away.

Maura refused to let go. "Jane? Jane, please, wait a moment before you wall yourself off from me." The brunette stopped moving, but the blush remained and her eyes remained downcast. "You don't have to be embarrassed with me." With her free hand, Maura reached up to gently push Jane's chin up, forcing eye contact. "I'll never judge you." She gave a gentle smile. "You can trust me."

The detective gave a slight nod of her head. She closed her eyes as she felt Maura's hand run from under her chin to the side of her face. "I feel like a scared alley cat. Any moment now, I just know I'm going to bolt for the door." She leaned her face into Maura's hand.

"That would be ill-advised." Jane opened her eyes to give the blonde a questioning look. "This _is_ your apartment after all." They giggled. "I think you're more like a kitten and less like a scared cat."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, everything is new to you so it frightens you. But, I've seen how you react to situations. Once the newness wears off and you become comfortable, you can be fearless, and, regardless of how scared you are, I don't recall ever seeing you back away from something you thought to be right or something you really wanted."

Jane swallowed hard. She reached up and pulled Maura's hand into her lap so that she held both hands with her own. "I wish I was fearless right now."

"Jane," Maura stared into Jane's eyes trying to make certain the other woman knew the sincerity of her words. "You don't need my permission to hold me, or kiss me, or claim me as belonging to you." She blushed slightly at the last part of that sentence. "Being my partner means you are allowed those rights without strings or demands. I give those rights freely to you because I want to." She gave Jane's hand a gentle squeeze. "And because I want you to."

For a moment, they sat in silence as Jane examined Maura's hands. She held them, turning them over, running her thumb along elegant fingers and smooth palms. With a gentle pull, Jane guided Maura to lay against her as she settled back into the sofa.

They settled into a comfortable silence.

Maura pulled Jane's arms around her and rested her head against the other woman's chest so they both lay staring at the ceiling. She waited until Jane's breathing had calmed and her body relaxed before deciding it was safe to turn around in her partner's arms. Gently, carefully, she turned around so they faced each other. She was slightly amused to see Jane's look of terror. "Jane, I don't bite," she gave a comforting smile, "Unless, of course, you want me to?" Jane's eyes widened for a moment. Maura winked at her and gave her _that_ smile again. "Do you want me to sit up?"

"No," Jane's arms tightened around Maura's waist. "I also don't want you to bite me… right now." She let the blush run across her face.

"Okay, but only because you told me you didn't want me to." _That_ smile widened. "What would you like to do instead?"

Jane gave her a timid smile. "Maybe we should try giving this kissing thing another try?"

"Are you certain?." Maura narrowed her eyes, but _that_ smile remained.

"Well, you know, I've been told that I get better, more confident, at things the more I do them. So, I was thinking, this seems like a good time to encourage my confidence, right?"

Maura pretended to consider for a moment. "That seems reasonable." She lowered her head, her lips just a hair's breadth away from Jane's. "How do you suggest we start?"

Jane smirked and closed the distance.

* * *

The phone vibrating on the bedside table woke Jane at 3AM. With a groan, she rolled over.

"Rizzoli."

"Jane, we got one in the business district." Frost sounded tired.

Jane sighed, took down the information, and got dressed. She hated starting work so early in morning. She hated the reason why she had to work even more. Homicides should never happen. But, they did, and that's why she had a job.

However, she couldn't help but smile as she realized she'd see Maura soon. At least there was a bright spot.

* * *

**Upon consultation with my stalkers, I've decided that I'm going to postpone their first encounter. At least I've warned you. PS, if you _are_ one of my stalkers, I expect you to comment on this chapter. o_-  
**


	11. Chapter 11

"How long?" Jane squatted down next to the body.

"Based on liver temperature, I'd say approximately 2 to 4 hours at most." Maura pulled the thermometer from the body's torso. "Petechial hemorrhaging in addition to the bruising around the neck indicate strangulation." Maura pointed at the body as she gave a cursory examination. "Lacerations and abrasions on the forearms and palms indicate the victim was in a defensive stance at some point." She narrowed her eyes as she looked closer at the body. "There appears to be a wound of some kind on the victim's right side. It's a large gash, 2 ½ to 3 centimeters wide."

"A stab wound?" Jane tried to jot down the information as it was presented to her. "Is that what killed him?"

"No, there would be more blood, and what blood is here never started to clot. The victim was already dead when this wound was made, and," the M.E. carefully pulled up the shirt to run a hand over the victim's side. "It feels as though his ribs are broken, but there isn't any bruising. That would also indicate this damage was done after the victim was killed."

"So, the guy is attacked in a back alley, he defends himself, the perp somehow gets the upper hand, strangles him, kills him, stabs him, and then… what? He kicks the guy in the ribs for good measure?"

"You're speculating." Maura stood up, brushing her legs off. "I'll know more once we get him back to the lab."

Jane rolled her eyes and slammed her little notebook shut. "Come on, Maura, that seems pretty likely, don't you think? What if…"

"You know I don't like statements that begin that way." The M.E. pulled her gloves off, tossed them into the receptacle, and ordered her crew to move the body. "I should have the autopsy report for you in a few hours."

"Great," Jane trotted to catch up. "Once you get it done, you want to grab some breakfast? It should be about time by then."

Maura smiled. "Sure, we can go over the results while we eat."

"Okay, call me when it's ready?" Jane blushed.

"Of course." The doctor walked away toward the van.

"Jane, what did Dr. Isles say?" Frost came up behind his partner, camera in hand.

"That she'd have breakfast with me." Jane was grinning.

"What?" Frost walked around to look the other detective in the eye. "Did you get any sleep at all, or did you forget your cup of coffee on the way in?"

Jane shook her head. "I mean, she'll have the results by breakfast time." She made a face and waved her hand to dismiss whatever comment Frost was about to make. "You know what I mean. Come on, let's go to the station so we can get started on processing this stuff."

* * *

"Rizzoli."

_"The results are in, and I've completed the autopsy. Are you still interested in eating breakfast while we go over the report?"_

Jane smirked. "And miss out on your attractive and appetizing breakfast table conversation? Never! I'll be down in moment." She heard Maura chuckling as she hung up the phone. She was still smirking when she stood up to go to the morgue. "What?" Korsak was eyeing her.

"Rizzoli, is there something you're not telling me?"

"About what?" She pulled her blazer on and popped her holster on her left hip. "Maura just finished the autopsy report."

"About you and Dr. Isles." He raised an eyebrow. "What's going on with you two?"

"What's going on?" Her voice cracked a little, but she ignored it. "Right now what's going is I'm going down there to get the autopsy report and go to breakfast. Is that okay with you, Korsak?"

"You're going to talk about dead bodies over breakfast?" Frost looked a little green.

"Yeah, I'm starving, and the results are in. It's called _time management_. Maybe, if you learned a little of that yourself, you wouldn't have to sleep at your desk." She threw the men a look that dared them to say anything else.

"Hey, I told you I was just resting my eyes!"

"Sure you were, Frost." She headed for the elevators. "I'll be back in a little bit."

* * *

"If that is anyone besides Maura, Joe, I'm going to shoot them," Jane rolled off her sofa to open the door.

"Jane, who are you talking to?" Maura peeked around the brunette's shoulder.

"Joe," she leaned down and gave the doctor a light kiss before stepping aside to let her into the apartment. "You're here late."

"I thought I'd come by and check on you. This case seems to be quite trying." The blonde made her way to the sofa. She carefully moved some papers from the cushion to the coffee table and sat down. "Also, it's been four days since we've had any time together. I missed you."

Jane plopped down next to Maura. She gave the blonde a side glance as she arranged the papers on the table in front of her. "Really?" She grinned. "But, you see me every day."

"Yes," Maura reached over to turn Jane toward her, "But not in the way I'd like to see you." She ran her hand to the back of Jane's neck and pulled her forward. "I find I'm in need of more intimate attention than taking a break to eat a meal and discuss this case." She gave a slight nod toward the paperwork. "Do you think you could take a small break?"

Jane leaned forward, pushing both of them down on the sofa. "Yeah, I think I can be talked into it. Besides," she lowered her head to lay a kiss on the side of Maura's neck. "Sometimes it helps to take a break and refocus." She nipped at the doctor's collarbone. "Right?"

Maura growled. "Of course," She gave a little push to get Jane to look her in the eye. "But just a small break? I'd hate to make us miss something because I distracted the lead detective." She ran her hands through Jane's hair.

Jane smiled. "I only planned a small break. I'm not ready for anything bigger just yet."

Maura nodded and pulled Jane down for another kiss.

* * *

"Jane!" The pounding on her door was an unwelcome wake-up call. "Jane, it's Korsak. Open the door."

Jane opened one eye and glanced around. She'd fallen asleep on the sofa. She groaned and let her head fall back against the cushion. It moaned. Her head shot up, and she realized she'd also fallen asleep on Maura.

"Jane, I know you're in there." The pounding continued.

"Crap," Jane rolled off both woman and sofa.

"Language, Jane," Maura muttered as she rolled over to face the back of the sofa.

"Alright, I'm coming," She pulled the blanket on the back of the sofa down to cover Maura. Then, she staggered to the door. "Korsak, do you know what time it is?"

"Yeah, it's 10:30 in the morning." He pushed past her into the apartment. "I've been trying to call you for two hours. Where have you been?"

Jane rolled her eyes and closed the door. "Asleep."

He gave her the once over. "Yeah, I can see that. You look like you slept on the floor."

"The couch, actually," Maura sat up and blinked a few times. "Good morning, Vince."

"Dr. Isles?" He looked from the woman on the sofa to the woman standing next to him. "Okay, what's going on here. You two have been hiding something for weeks now."

"I came over to check on Jane last night, and we fell asleep on the couch." Maura stood up and stretched. "Jane, I'm going to go take a shower, okay?"

"Yeah, sure, you know where everything is, and that pink dress of yours is here."

"Mauve," Maura gave her an irritated look.

"Whatever… I had it cleaned last week." She rolled her eyes.

"You did? Jane, that was very thoughtful of you," Maura smiled. "Thank you." She gave Jane's arm a little pat as she walked past both detectives and into the bathroom.

"Jane?" Korsak was steadily staring at the brunette.

"You want some coffee?" Jane shuffled into the kitchen. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"Yes. No. Why are you and Dr. Isles sleeping together on your couch?" He sat down in the kitchen and dropped the folder he'd been carrying on the counter.

"I'll make some coffee. I can give you a bowl of cereal. Lucky Charms? Maura and I are dating. What did you bring by, anyway?" Jane flipped the coffee pot on and grabbed three bowls.

"It's the latest on Joseph Peterson. It seems he was more connected with our victim than he let on. Did you just say you and Dr. Isles are dating?"

Jane answered without turning around. "Yeah. Connected how?"

"Jane, you can't just drop something like that in my lap and keep going."

"I didn't drop anything in your lap," she poured the cereal into the empty bowls. "You asked me, and I told you. Big difference, Korsak. Besides, I don't see what it matters if Maura and I are seeing each other. I mean, I can't imagine it's actually a surprise to anyone." She pulled down three coffee cups. "What kind of connections?" She poured two cups and turned to hand one to the detective.

Maura was standing behind Korsak with a smile that lit up the entire room. Jane's oversized terrycloth robe was wrapped around her, and her hair was down but wet. However, none of that mattered as she walked across the small distance to stop in front of the brunette. "I don't want cereal for breakfast, Jane. Why don't you wait, let me get dressed, and I can cook breakfast for all three of us while you take a shower?"

Jane seemed to consider it for a moment. "Okay with you, Korsak?"

Korsak was staring between the two women. It took him a moment to register the question. "Uh, yeah, that's fine, I guess."

"Okay, we'll wait," she gazed down at the blonde. "How long?"

"Ten minutes?"

"Ten?" Jane gave her a skeptical look.

"Twenty?" Maura blushed.

"Yeah, I'll buy that." Jane leaned down and brushed a gentle kiss across Maura's pouting lips. "Your dress and matching shoes are in my closet."

"Okay, I won't be long." Maura walked away, giving Korsak a nod as she went by.

Both of them watched her leave the room.

"You could have told me, Jane. You know I wouldn't have judged you." Korsak took the offered mug of coffee and started adding sugar.

"I know, but I wasn't ready. I'm still not ready for everyone to know." Jane sighed. "This is hard for me."

"You know you can trust me. I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to." He smirked at her. "If it was going to be anyone, I'm glad it's Dr. Isles." Korsak nodded to himself. "She's good for you, Janie."

"Thanks, Korsak," Jane rolled her eyes and sat down next to him. "Tell me what you've got on this guy," she demanded as she flipped the folder open.

* * *

**You know what I love about this? I love that Jane is slowly easing into being okay with who she is and who she's dating. I figure, if she can tell her family and then Korsak, she can eventually be okay with anyone knowing. I also love the mental picture of Maura with wet hair in an oversized terry cloth bathrobe. *sigh* I'd love to have a pic (or manip) of that!**


	12. Chapter 12

"To think, it only took us two weeks to catch the guy," Jane set three bottles of beer and one glass of wine down at their usual table at the Dirty Robber.

"I think we should shoot for a smaller timeframe next time. I missed two games and a date." Frost grabbed one of the bottles and handed the other one to Korsak.

"I didn't realize you were dating anyone, Barry." Maura sipped her wine.

"I'm not, but I was trying to." He shook his head. "It's impossible to date someone and do this job. No wonder you're all still single." He gave a side glance to Korsak. "Or, you know, divorced three times."

"Hey, I resent that!" Korsak grabbed the bar mix away Frost.

"You can't resent the truth, Korsak." Frost snatched the bowl back.

Meanwhile, Jane and Maura sat quietly on their side of the booth watching the two men go at each other. After a few minutes of back-and-forth, Frost finally gave up on the bar mix and turned his attention back to the topic of dating.

"Seriously, how do you do it, Dr. Isles?"

"Do what, Barry?" Maura shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Date!"

"Why would you assume that I am currently dating something?" She was now intently staring at her half full glass of wine.

"Well, I see you dressed up nicer than usual on Friday nights, I've overheard you making plans for what sounds like a date, and," he shrugged, "I don't know, you just seem like the one out of all of us who actually _has_ a social life."

"Hey, I _have_ a social life, thank you," Jane kicked Frost under the table.

He winced, "Going to your folks once a week to have dinner and watch the game _is not_ a social life, Rizzoli."

"Come on," Jane scowled at her fellow detective, "Just because _you_ don't know about my social life doesn't mean I don't _have_ a social life."

"Really, Rizzoli? Well, if you have such an _active_ social life, what are you doing here drinking with us on a Friday night, huh?" Frost nodded in satisfaction to himself.

"Well, I… you know, we always have drinks after we close a case. It's _tradition_. Who am I to break up a tradition?" She shrugged. "That's bad luck."

"There is no such thing as luck, Jane." Maura sighed heavily as she pushed her empty glass away. "Luck is simply a way of explaining situations that happen in a favorable way when the person in question does not know all the facts leading to those favorable conditions. We've been through this before."

"Lucky me," the brunette grumbled.

"Dr. Isles," Korsak was laughing, "I don't think Jane's the one to tell about not having any luck. I've seen her manage to do, _and to get_, some pretty lucky things since I've known her."

"Vince…" Maura was interrupted by the waitress.

"More wine? Beer?" The redhead looked down at Jane and grinned. "You look like you're almost out. Would you like another?" Her grin widened. "Or, maybe there is something else I could get you?" She winked at the detective.

"She's fine, thank you." Maura handed the empty wine glass to the waitress. "I would like a glass of water, please."

"Sure," the waitress hesitantly took the glass. She looked back at Jane. "Are you sure I can't get something for you?" She knelt down by the side of the brunette. "We have some new drink specials. I could recommend something to you if you'd like."

Jane glanced from the blonde to her left to the redhead squatting down beside her. "Uh, yeah, sure… drink specials are good."

"Great!" The waitress looked around the room and quickly pulled out a pen. "My manager is waving me down. Here," she scribbled something on a bar napkin. "I recommend these." She handed it to Jane. "Just let me know." She winked again before walking away from the table.

Frost stared at Jane for a moment. "Did… did you just get hit on by that waitress?"

"I don't think so." Jane looked down at the napkin, and her eyes bulged for a moment. "Well, she's barking up the wrong tree anyway." She shrugged and threw the paper down on the table.

"She gave you her number?" Korsak smirked.

"Like I said, she's hitting on the wrong girl." Jane finished off her beer.

"She'd do better to stop hitting on you at all," Maura picked the napkin up and stared at the number. "I don't care for her behavior, Jane." She frowned and crumpled the napkin up in her hand.

"It's not like I can control how other people act around me, Maura." She shrugged. "Besides, I'm going to call her or anything."

"Yeah, she's _so_ not your type," Frost chuckled.

"What do you mean by that?" the doctor gave an exasperated sigh. "How would you know what Jane's 'type' is?"

Jane's head snapped around to look at the blonde. Frost held his hands up in surrender. "Easy, doc… are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine, Barry." Maura closed her eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"Here's your water." The waitress reached across the table, entering into Jane's personal space, as she placed the glass down by Maura. "Can I get you anything else?" She looked down at Jane again. "Did you find anything on that list that you liked?"

Jane pulled her lips together in a tight line for a moment as she ran her hand across her forehead. "No, I can't say that I did. I already picked up _that_ special with someone else." She kept her eyes on the waitress but put her arm around the now seething Maura. "I much prefer the one I picked out earlier, thanks."

"I see. I didn't mean to step on toes." Her smile faltered around the edges as she looked at the two women. "You're very lucky; I can tell." She nodded at the blonde. "If you folks need anything else, just flag me down." With that, she turned and walked away.

"Hey, you going to be okay?" Jane shifted to allow Maura to get more comfortable, but she kept her arm around the smaller woman. "I should have said something earlier."

"Yes, I am fine. I'm sorry," the other woman shook my head. "I really don't know what came over me."

Korsak sorted. "Jealousy will do strange things to you, Doc."

"Jealousy?" Frost glanced at the people sitting at the table. "What's going on here?"

"You really can't tell?" Korsak shook his head. "Really, Janie, when are you going to let me be your partner again? Frost's not gaining any points for his detective skills here."

"Wait a second, you two are _actually_ dating? That wasn't just something you were doing to get that waitress to leave Jane alone?"

Jane gave Maura's shoulder a little squeeze, pulling her closer into her side. "It wasn't a show."

"And you knew already?" He threw an accusatory look at Korsak.

"_I_ can do my detective work." The older man shrugged.

They sat there in silence waiting to see what Frost would say next. After he finished off his beer, he nodded to himself. "I lost the pool."

"I don't understand." Maura looked at Jane. "A large body of water used for the purposes of recreation and exercise?"

"No," Jane was clearly annoyed. "They, apparently, have been placing bets on how long it would take for us to officially start dating."

"I missed it by two weeks." Frost shook his head.

"I lost it by a month," Korsak shrugged.

"I'm really kind of hating you two right now." Jane stood up. "Come on, Maura, let's go." She turned to the two men. "Really? A betting pool? Who started it?"

"It doesn't matter." Korsak was laughing. "Look at it this way, at least you don't have to worry about what we'll say. Most of the precinct was in on it. So, at least you know none of us think it's a bad thing. Right, Frost?"

"Yeah, it's not a bad thing," he shook his head, "But, that is one hell of a mental picture."

Maura chuckled as she climbed out of the booth.

"Hey!" Jane punched his shoulder. "We're leaving. We'll see you two on Monday."

* * *

"Will you be alright, Jane?" Maura closed Jane's apartment door behind her. "I didn't expect you to behave in that manner."

"I know, but," Jane pulled her jacket off as she headed to her bedroom. "I get tired of pretending."

Maura followed her. "Do you?"

"Yeah, why do you sound so surprised?" Jane sat down on her bed to pull off her shoes.

"Not long ago you would not have said that." Maura stood in the doorway and watched Jane. "It's a large step for you, Jane."

The brunette gave Maura an irritated look. "You always say the truth is best, right?"

"Well, yes, of course." Maura tilted her head to the side. "Are you mocking me? You know, it's difficult for me to tell sometimes."

"No, I'm not mocking you," Jane put her shoes away. "Listen, I think I need some time alone." She walked over to the blonde. "Would you be okay with that?"

"Alone for the night or alone for an indefinite amount of time?" Maura was beginning to sniffle.

"Just for tonight," Jane pulled the doctor into a tight embrace and kissed her temple. "Hey, I don't want you to go anywhere, okay? I just need tonight to process." She pulled back slightly and kissed the still trembling blonde. "I'm not going anywhere either. Okay?"

Maura nodded. "Okay," she gave a weak smile. "You'll call me if you need something?"

"Yeah, you know I will." Jane walked her to the door. "Be safe on the way home."

"I will." Maura placed a hand on Jane's shoulder to steady herself as she leaned in for another kiss. "Good night, Jane. Sleep well."

* * *

Jane pulled into Maura's driveway at 1 AM. Much to her surprise, there was a light on in the house. She sat in the car for a moment debating what she should do, but her need to see Maura passed her want to run. She calmly got out of the car, grabbed her overnight bag, and walked the short distance to the door.

The extra key she had to Maura's door was on a separate key ring she kept in her car, and she was glad she'd remembered to grab it. She suddenly had the desire to not disturb whatever it was Maura might be doing. She slowly pushed the key into the lock and turned it.

With a sigh, she opened the door and stepped inside.

The house smelled of lavender and Maura. It was warm and comforting. Maura's bedroom light was on. Jane made her way there trying to not make any noise. At the doorway, she stopped to watch Maura as she lay on her bed reading some sort of magazine article.

"Hey." Jane shifted her bag to her other arm.

"Jane!" Maura dropped her magazine. "You startled me." She tossed the reading material onto her nightstand and made a move to get up, but Jane waved her to stay.

"Sorry about that." She dropped the bag at the foot of the bed, kicked off her shoes, and climbed onto the empty side. "I couldn't sleep."

"Yes, I seem to be having the same problem." Maura sighed.

Jane settled back into the bed and reached to pull Maura down. They settled on top of the covers as they remained in their comfortable silence. "I sleep better when you're around."

"As do I with you." Maura snuggled into Jane's shoulder.

Jane pushed away from the blonde and turned on her side, looking at her. As Maura began to form a question, Jane kissed her. "I'm tired of talking, too."

"What…" Maura's question was blocked by another kiss. She allowed Jane to set the pace. "Jane," she sighed out the brunette's name too distracted by the strong, wandering hands to be too caught up in the meaning behind what was happening.

Jane flipped them over, putting Maura beneath her. She ran a line of kisses from the blonde's soft lips, over her jawline, up the line her neck, to just behind her ear. She nuzzled against the heated skin she found there. "Maura, I need you." She nipped at the blonde's ear. "Please," she whispered.

Maura's eyes shot open. "Are you sure?"

"I've never been so sure." Jane ran her hand underneath Maura's shirt.

Maura let out a strangled moan.

* * *

**I know what you're thinking. The answer is... I'm not sure yet. I may not go into detail on this one... hard for me to decide on it.**


	13. Chapter 13

Jane pulled them up into a sitting position so she could push Maura's shirt up. She swallowed hard as the smooth, pale expanse of the other woman's torso came into view. With shaking hands, she pulled the thin material over the blonde's head and let it drop down the side of the bed. "You're beautiful," she stretched her hand out but stopped just a few inches short of Maura's skin. "I really don't know..."

"It's okay, Jane." Maura gently took the hovering hand and guided it to rest on the side of her breast. "It's okay." She leaned in, allowing Jane access to her exposed top.

Jane licked her lips as she slowly moved her hand across the soft skin of Maura's chest. Her hand stopped as her palm ran over a taunt nipple. She stared down at the contact, looking at her scarred hand enveloping Maura's perfect breast.

Maura's hand covered Jane's. "I don't really see them, you know." She pulled the hand up to place a gentle kiss on the other woman's palm. "They're a part of you, and," she moved the hand back down, "I desire you... _all_ of you." She leaned in, getting to her knees so that she straddled the the brunette. "I want you to touch me, Jane." She wrapped her hands around the brunette's neck. "I crave it." She kissed her, taking the hand on her breast and pushing it lower on her body. "Please," she whispered into Jane's parted lips.

Jane locked eyes with the pleading blonde as she ran her hand over the curves before her to the top of Maura's pants. "These need to come off." She tugged at the waistband.

"Mine go if yours go," Maura shot Jane a devilish grin as she scooted back, off of Jane's lap.

"Seems fair," Jane slid off the side of the bed and quickly disrobed. She slowly climbed back on as she ran her eyes over Maura's nude and prone form. "God, Maura, you really are incredible."

She slowly ran her body over the blonde's causing both to whimper and groan from the contact. "I can't promise I'll be any good at this," she settled on top of Maura, her body between Maura's legs.

"I can't either," Maura leaned forward to nip at Jane's jawline. "We'll learn together."

* * *

It wasn't the first time Jane had woken in Maura's bed. It wasn't the first time Jane had found Maura wrapped around her as she slowly climbed into consciousness. It wasn't even the first time Jane had found herself happy to be in Maura's embrace as she woke.

It was the first time, however, that she found herself completely nude in Maura's bed with a nude Maura wrapped around her. She smiled to herself as she recognized the first two facts made her happier to be in Maura's embrace.

"You're awake." The blonde gently sat up, pulling much of the covers with her. "How did you sleep?"

Jane reached up to run a hand over the smooth expanse of back in front her her. "Can't complain." In ordinary circumstances, even after having the night she had with Maura, she would have been self conscious about laying in bed nude and uncovered in the light of day. But, she found she simply couldn't be bothered. Jane was much more interested in the uncharacteristic frumpy form in front of her. She soaked in the picture of Maura with her hair in disarray covered only slightly by a rumpled sheet. She tried to memorize every curve, every nuance of movement as the blonde stretched and yawned.

"Jane," she turned back and smiled at the staring brunette, "What are you looking at?"

Jane smirked, letting her hand fall back down by her side. "You. What else would I be looking at?"

Maura blushed, and Jane's eyes traced the pattern as it ran the length of the blonde's body. "I must look awful." Maura ran a hand through her somewhat tangled hair.

"I think you look great." Jane sat up. "I also think I'm starving and in need of a shower."

"Yes, I feel the same way," Maura leaned back against the brunette. "You gave me quite the workout last night, Jane." She let out a soft moan as the other woman ran her arms around the doctor's waist.

"I could say the same about you." Jane pushed Maura's hair back to place a kiss on her neck. "Oh... you're going to kill me."

Maura quickly turned around. "Why? What's wrong?"

Jane made an apologetic face as she pointed to her own neck. "Hickey."

"You gave me a bruise on my neck?" The blonde's hand shot up to her neck.

"Did you just say bruise instead of... whatever it's called in your technical google speak?" Jane was smirking.

"I... well... Did I?" Maura's eyes had grown big, and Jane couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah, you did."

"I must be having issues concentrating due to lack of..." Jane leaned forward to put a hand over Maura's mouth.

"I like it." She kissed the other woman's cheek. "Let's go get cleaned up so we can get breakfast, okay?" She ran the pad of her thumb over Maura's bottom lip. "We can go to that cafe you like."

"Okay," Maura smiled. "I'd like that."

* * *

**I decided to split the difference on that scene. Hope you ladies are okay with that :-/**


	14. Chapter 14

Jane opened the café door for Maura and stepped in behind her. After taking a deep breath, she stopped beside the blonde and wrapped an arm around the other woman's waist.

She could feel Maura straighten at the unexpected contact. "Jane?"

"Looks like we can sit anywhere. You want to go to our normal table?" She started to guide them both to the table in question. Stunned, Maura simply nodded yes. At the table, Jane slid into the booth next to Maura as opposed to the opposite side. She only blushed slightly when she told the waitress they weren't waiting for anyone, and she didn't remove her hand from its resting place on Maura's thigh when the waitress replied with a curt, "I see."

"Are you feeling alright, Jane?" The doctor turned a concerned eye to the smirking brunette. "You're acting…"

"Like I'm your girlfriend?" The smirk widened slightly, and the blush deepened more.

Maura paused for a moment. She was caught up in her thoughts when the waitress interrupted them to set their drinks on the table and take their order.

"I… are you sure you'll be okay with this? Public displays of affection are considered in most societies to be a sign of ownership to each other stemming from…"

Jane kissed her. "I know, but I think I'm within my rights to claim you." She kissed the astonished blonde again. "Don't you?"

"Yes," Maura swallowed, "Of course."

"Good… are you okay with this?" Jane made a small motion with her head to indicate she was referring to their current situation.

"Yes," the blonde smiled, "I'm _very_ okay with this." She scooted over, closer to Jane. Jane moved her arm to wrap it around Maura's shoulders. Maura took it as an invitation and laid her head on Jane's shoulder. "You do realize this means I also reserve the right to 'claim' you in public as well?"

Jane gave a low, raspy chuckle. "Yeah, the thought had crossed my mind."

"Jane Rizzoli!" They both knew that voice. They both winced as they heard the footsteps coming up behind them. "That had better not be anyone else other than," Angela Rizzoli walked around the booth to look her daughter in the eye. "Maura! It's good to see you."

"Hello, Mrs. Rizzoli." Maura looked as though she was caught between wanting to pull away from Jane and wanting to hide from Jane's mother.

"Angela, please. I've already told you." The older woman slid into the seat across the way. "What are you two doing here?"

"Ma, we're getting breakfast," Jane gave her mother a look that clearly said that was a stupid question.

"Breakfast? It's nearly 1 in the afternoon. You two are just getting up?" Angela shot Maura a sly smile. "What have you been up to that kept you up so late last night?"

"Really?" Jane rolled her eyes. "What are you… you know what? I don't want to know. Maura, you don't have to answer that. In fact, don't." Maura smiled and buried her red face in Jane's shoulder.

"Oh, come on sweetie, it's not that big of a deal. Two people in a committed relationship are expected to have late nights every now and then." She winked at them. "If you ask me, it's about time you two did! You know, your father and I…"

"No, Ma. Whatever you're about to say, I _really_ don't want to hear." Jane held her hand up as if to ward off the upcoming commentary from her mother.

"Okay, fine. But, if you ever want to talk about…"

"Not going to happen." Jane closed her eyes and shook her head. "No way, not if you were the last person on earth besides Maura. I'd talk to a sock puppet first."

"A sock puppet?" Maura sat up and pulled away from Jane. "Wouldn't that essentially mean you were talking to yourself?"

"Yeah, my point exactly. There are just some things you don't talk to your parents about, and," the brunette made a vague motion with her hand, "_Relations_ are one of them. No, not going to happen."

With a slight smirk, the blonde quirked her head to the side. "Did you just admit out loud what I believe you to have admitted out loud?"

Jane froze for a moment, her eyes growing large. She looked from the still smirking blond to her equally smirking mother and back again. She groaned as she put her head in her hands. "Is nothing sacred anymore?"

"I'm your mother, Jane. You know you don't have to keep secrets from me." She reached over and gave her daughter a gentle pat on the arm. "You know that your father and I approve of Maura," she smiled brightly at the doctor. "Besides, I don't see what the big deal is."

"Oh, Jane, the food is coming. Angela, did you want something to eat?" Maura began to clear the table in preparation for the plates.

"No, sweetie, I was actually about to leave." The older woman stood. "But, you'll both be at dinner on Sunday night, right?"

"Of course, Angela! What should I bring?"

"Bring my daughter on time, for a change, and that'll be enough." She bent over and kissed Jane on the cheek. "I'll see both of you later. Enjoy your breakfast!"

They watched her leave as the waitress set the plates down.

"Oh man," Jane shook her head. "That was not what I had in mind for the morning at all. Leave it to my mother to make me say something before I have a chance to stop myself."

"Is it so bad?" Maura gave a side glance in the brunette's direction.

"No, not really." Jane smiled again. "I'm okay with it, you know?" She turned to the blonde. "It's nice to not go through this alone. I'm glad you're here."

Maura set her fork down and turned to Jane. "I'm glad you're allowing me to be here with you. If you ever change your mind…"

"I won't." Jane pushed a strand of hair away from Maura's face. "I don't want to lose what this is. I know that it's not always going to be easy, and I don't want to mess this up. Some things are going to take me some time. But, I think this will work, Maura. I really do." She made a face. "Do you?"

Maura captured Jane's hand in her own. "Yes, I do."

"Okay then… let's eat before it gets cold. Cold eggs are like eating rubber. Besides, we have a lot to do today. That bed isn't going to lay on itself." Jane turned back to her plate with a smile playing on her lips.

"Then, I suppose we should eat so we can help it out."

"My thoughts exactly."

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**The end! Whew... that one took a while to finish, didn't it? Hope you enjoyed it. ^_^ I'm begging you peeps to review this and let me know what you think now that it's completed. Reviews are like crack to ff writers, honest! It keeps us going. :-D  
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